Homeownership

Homeownership Program

General Requirements:

Successful applicants must demonstrate a

• Need for affordable housing
• Willingness to partner
• Ability to pay an affordable mortgage

Terms and Conditions:

• You must have lived in Kanawha or Putnam County continuously for at least 3 months at the time of application.
• Habitat’s Homeownership Program is not designed for emergency housing situations. The program will take months to years to complete.
• Applications will be accepted periodically within defined application periods and considered for appropriate properties on our construction schedule. Applications received outside these defined application periods will not be considered.
• Applications that are missing information or required documents are incomplete and will not be considered.
• We will conduct Sex Offender Registry and Criminal Background Checks.
• Habitat does not give houses away. If approved, you will purchase your house from Habitat and must make a monthly mortgage payment on time, every time. The monthly payment includes escrow to cover annual property taxes and insurance.
• The determination of whether you can afford a 30-year mortgage is based on the size of the house that is appropriate for your household (determined by the number of residents, age, etc.), typical utility costs, and your household income. The mortgage application is separate from the initial homeownership program application.
• You must complete a nine-week Master Homeowner Program and a nine-week Homeowner Financial Literacy Program. Classes are typically held each week on Monday evenings and scheduled several times each year. The cost for each program is $90 ($10/class) which is refunded in full on successful completion.
• Each adult in the household must work at least 250 hours on the construction of their own house or the house of another Habitat Homebuyer. Accommodations are made on an as needed basis. This is called sweat equity.
• You must pay a $600.00 down payment before construction on your house begins. This can be paid in a lump sum or in installments and typically isn’t paid until at least half of the sweat equity is earned.
• You may not have filed bankruptcy in the past two years. If you have previously filed for bankruptcy, it should be discharged no less than two years ago.
• Your credit report will be requested and reviewed to verify that you are responsible for paying your bills on time, we will calculate debt to income ratios, check references, verify amounts and sources of income, and will conduct a home visit and interview.
• Your household income must not exceed 60% of the Area Mean Income as defined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Application Information:

• Application Period for Spring/Summer 2026
  • Opens: 12:00 Noon on Monday, January 5, 2026
  • Closes: 5:00 PM EST on Friday, February 13, 2026
• Incomplete applications and applications submitted outside the application period will not be considered.

If you understand these requirements and conditions, we suggest that you register to attend an upcoming Application Information Meeting (AIM) to learn more about the Habitat Homeownership Program. Application forms will be available at the AIM.

Free registration is required.

Privacy Notice

At Habitat for Humanity of Kanawha and Putnam County, Inc. (HFHKP) we are committed to keeping your information private. We recognize the importance applicants, program partners, tenants, and homeowners place on the privacy and confidentiality of their information. While new technologies allow us to more efficiently serve our customers, we are committed to maintaining privacy standards that are synonymous with our established and trusted name.

When collecting, storing, and retrieving applicant, program family, and homeowner data – such as tax returns, pay stubs, credit reports, employment verifications and payment history – internal controls are maintained throughout the process to ensure security and confidentiality.

We collect nonpublic personal information about you from the following sources:

• Information we receive from you on applications or other forms;
• Information about your transactions with us or others; and
• Information we receive from a consumer reporting agency.

We may disclose the following kinds of nonpublic personal information about you:

• Information we receive from you on applications or other forms, such as your name, address, social security number, assets, income, etc.;
• Information about your transactions with us or others such as your loan balance, payment history, etc.; and
• Information we receive from a consumer reporting agency such as your credit worthiness and credit history.

HFHKP employees and volunteers are subject to a written policy regarding confidentiality, and access to applicant data is restricted to staff and volunteers on an as-needed basis. Information is used for lawful business purposes and is never shared with third parties without your consent, except as permitted by law. As permitted by law, we may disclose nonpublic personal information about you to the following types of third parties:

• Financial service providers, such as mortgage servicing agents; and
• Nonprofit organizations, government entities, or other subsidy providers.

If you prefer that we do not disclose non-public personal information about you to nonaffiliated third parties, you opt out of those disclosures, that is, you may direct us not to make those disclosures (other than disclosures permitted by law). If you wish to opt out of disclosures to nonaffiliated third parties, request by writing to HFHKP, 815 Court ST, Charleston, WV 25301.